The federal agency tasked with conducting independent crash investigations is recommending technology in new vehicles to limit speed and prevent impaired driving in an effort to reduce the increase in related deaths. After the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act gave the Department of Transportation three years to develop a permit to use such features in new vehicles, the National Transportation Safety Board's recommendation for an alcohol-impaired registration system is moving toward requirements. However, the committee's renewed recommendation to incentivize smart speed control systems has yet to gain broader federal support and could face resistance from American drivers who are used to putting speed limits on law enforcement rather than the vehicles themselves. The NTSB's recommendations, which cannot be implemented unless adopted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, specifically include requiring all new vehicles to be equipped with "passive vehicle-integrated alcohol reduction systems, advanced driver monitoring systems, or a combination of the two. If the driver is not under the influence of alcohol, the vehicle can be deny or restrict." The NTSB reiterated its 2017 recommendations and also recommended that NHTSA encourage "vehicle manufacturers and consumers to use Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA) systems to prevent speed-related crashes." Intelligent cruise control systems can range from warning systems that issue visual or audible warnings when the driver is speeding, to systems that electronically limit the vehicle's speed. The NTSB did not specify what type of system would be used. An investigation into the 2021 California New Year's Day crash that killed nine people, including seven children, made a recommendation Tuesday, according to the NTSB. The agency said investigators "determined that the driver of the SUV (involved in the crash) had a high level of alcohol intoxication and was speeding." NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said Tuesday that the technologies "could prevent tens of thousands of deaths that we see in the United States every year from impaired driving and speeding crashes." According to the NHTSA, 32 people die every day in alcohol-related crashes — more than 11,000 a year. It reported a 5% increase in deaths in 2021. According to the advocacy group Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Department of Transport is evaluating several technologies aimed at preventing drunk driving. The department has three years to develop a requirement that new vehicles be equipped with "advanced drunk driving prevention technology" as part of an infrastructure law passed last year with bipartisan support. NHTSA announced Monday that it "has begun work to meet bipartisan Infrastructure Act requirements to develop advanced regulations for self-driving vehicle technologies." Such technologies include external cameras and sensors to monitor driving performance, internal cameras and sensors that monitor the driver's head and eyes, and alcohol sensors to detect whether the driver is intoxicated and then immobilize the vehicle. The future rules raise privacy concerns and questions about whether the system will misclassify certain people, such as people with disabilities, as intoxicated. The Smart Speed startle July 2024 European adaptation system is gaining ground in the European market, where it will be mandatory for all new cars sold in Europe. The new car will have "cascade acoustic alerts", "cascade vibration". warnings ", "according to the European Commission using haptic feedback from the accelerator pedal" or "speed control function". Managers can override the ISA system, the committee said. New York is also testing a fleet of city vehicles equipped with the ISA system. The city announced in August that 50 cars driven by city employees will be equipped with a system that will set a maximum speed for the vehicles and "also adapt to local speed limits." The system has an active mode that automatically brakes the vehicle and a passive mode that warns drivers of speeding. The vehicles will be upgraded and installed in vehicles in various city departments, and will be tested with 14 brand new all-electric Ford Mach Es.
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